So the awesome news is that I'm now done with work until Tuesday. Senior Management wants to take the weekend off, and there aren't any deliveries scheduled during the busy weekend for us to handle. The sales staff will be in and working hard, but I'm third shift and management doesn't want to pay us time and a half on Monday.

The downside is, that this was unexpected. They usually have holiday/weekend work of some kind, so this is a first. We've worked every holiday since Christmas. Those of us who depend on our shifts for living expenses now have three days in a row where we aren't going to be paid at all, much less any overtime pay. This is going to mean that some of us are going hungry this weekend.

It was always the mindset to think most of these folks were just students living at home making some extra cash for spending, or maybe insurance for the car if the their folks wouldn't pay it for them. That is not the real world, probably never really was, I just believed it was because I knew young folks who were working in those areas while attending school. It is good for me, I think, to have awakened!!

Large retail stores are also cutting significantly back already part-time hours for their employees rather than lay them off. Employees who used to work 30 - 36 hours a week are now lucky to get 10 hours. This is happening everywhere around here. The small amount of people lucky enough to work at least 30 hours are doing the jobs of five people.

The unfortunate part of the retail reports are they report on all instead of breaking them down. Walmart, JCPenny's, Sears, KMart,Targe, Lowes, HomeDepot are reporting sluggish sales and non-hiring in PA/NJ/DE/MD/VA/NC. While stores like Abercombie and Fitch, Tiffany's, Saks, Bloomies are reporting targeted sales. As per the past three months, the higher end stores are not seeing the struggles the others are seeing and feeling.